Only Time
by TokehGecko
Summary: The Process of Maturing is so interesting to observe... There's a pairing in here! Naruto with... ooh! AnkuKurenaiTemariTenTenAyame


Naruto Fanfiction

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Author's Note: My first SERIOUS try at Romance…

* * *

A loud cheer resounded through the streets in the morning. The scream made one think of a young boy, but it in fact belonged to a pretty old man. The old man was jumping wildly as he was followed by his daughter, on his way to a certain apartment. 

As the duo appeared at their destination, the older of the two couldn't help but scream again. This time, a lot louder.

"Oy, wake up, runt!" The old man began as he banged his fists at the door. He didn't seem angry at all, but he couldn't 'edit' his own voice, it was just the way his voice was. "I've got news for your stomach, boy!"

The door slowly opened, only to reveal a young man falling straight into the old man's daughter.

The old guy looked at the two on the ground as a vein popped on his forehead. "Hey, you bastard! Get your hands off my daughter!"

The younger man lazily picked himself up and stared at the older man. "Ah?" It took another three seconds for the young man to see that it was a man who was standing in front of him. "It's early…"

The old man snarled and banged Naruto on the head. "You're a corpse, you know that?" He said as his daughter stood up. "Wake up, you idiot!" He screamed loudly in Naruto's ear.

"Anko-chan?" The blonde Shinobi said as he stared at the old man's daughter.

"How dare you confuse my daughter with that over-active… !" He didn't finish the sentence.

"Ah?" Naruto let out as he rubbed his eyes. Slowly getting to his senses, he saw who the duo really was. "Ayame-chan! Ichiraku-sama!"

**Only Time  
**

Ayame and the old Ichiraku were seated at what seemed like a couch. They knew that the young man wasn't treated fairly in the village, but to have been given such a poor excuse of an apartment…

Naruto was freshening himself up and picking the right clothes for today. In his closet were a dozen sets of Chuunin and Jounin outfits, but also dozens of mysterious cloaks, including some orange ones… He chose to wear a dark-red Cloak today, and already picked a Jounin outfit for tonight, since he would have a night-mission tonight, anyway.

Ichiraku grinned as Naruto came in the… living room… "Naruto-kun! I came by to tell you that Ichiraku has become the most famous Ramen Stand of all Shinobi Countries! I am becoming one of the richest men of the world! All because of you!"

Naruto chuckled a little bit. Over the years, the man had matured quite a bit and wasn't so boasting about himself anymore. He had become well known and feared in the Shinobi World, with his Five Man Team…

Leaf's Special Forces; the Konoha Kyuukai or the Leaf's Long-cherished Hope…

The team was consistent of…

Long range Shinobi, Uchiha Sasuke, Sharingan Master

Short range Shinobi, Rock Lee, Green Beast

Defensive Shinobi, Hyuga Neji, The Hyuga Stone

Medical Shinobi, Haruno Sakura, Legendary Medic

Captain, Uzumaki Naruto, Red Flash

Uchiha Itachi had been killed. No one knew of the murderer, but it was very clear it was not Uchiha Sasuke. The Sharingan user came back one day to Leaf, with the proof of having killed Orochimaru. He also acknowledged having found his brother's corpse after the Akatsuki reigned for a short while. It seemed betrayal ran in the group and they decided to kill each other off, instead of bringing new order to the world. Not many Shinobis could join in the little war with the Akatsuki, because average Jounins were simply too weak to participate.

Gai had passed away, after a kunai wound turned out to be poisoned. Neji and Lee, who'd been his partners on the mission, eventually killed his murderer...Both of them turned a lot more serious after that, but Lee's playful nature bounced back occasionally and Neji could still crack a joke or two.

Haruno Sakura had improved greatly over the years, becoming almost equal with the great Tsunade, who still ruled over Leaf Village. Her Chakra supply had increased a lot and her Chakra control along with it. Her strength rivalled Tsunade's and the same could be said about her medical skills. She, too, had matured a lot and had become a lot more serious than before.

Uzumaki Naruto had become a legend when it was found out he had connections with the Fourth Hokage, actually using the Fourth's techniques. Hence the nickname Red Flash, instead of the Fourth's Yellow Flash. Everything returned back to normal as the Akatsuki died down and Naruto has fully merged with a lot of Chakra which was once the Kyuubi. He had become more mature than both Neji and Sasuke when it came to missions, but outside of missions, he was less serious.

Because Naruto was pretty famous outside of Leaf and often slept in other Villages, he often recommended to fellow Shinobis to try out the Ichiraku Ramen Stand. Shinobis and Villagers listened to the advice of the Red Flash and visited Konoha just for eating at Ichiraku's Place. Not being satisfied with the fact that there was NO Ichiraku's in their own Village, they had demanded to build such Stands in their own Countries.

And so, Ichiraku's own little Stand grew to a Ramen Restaurant, which existed in every Hidden Village…

* * *

Mr. Ichiraku and Ayame left Naruto's apartment together with Naruto. In front of the apartment, they parted ways. Ichiraku and Ayame had to open the restaurant and Naruto had plans to have breakfast with a certain crowd. 

As Naruto walked through the streets, he was reminded of the fact that the villagers no longer looked cold at him. Nowadays, they looked at him with respect. Yes, there were some exceptions, but that little group of insects couldn't really bother him.

Another thing that happened, or changed, was the fact that women gave Naruto a lot attention. Naruto didn't mind, but he didn't really mind, of course. He was the spitting image of the Fourth… His birth marks on his cheek were gone the day he and Kyuubi had fully merged. Gone were also the days where he could go berserk and transform a bit. The only thing of Kyuubi that remained in Naruto was his Chakra, as it was blood red…

But the list of ex-girlfriends… was huge. Sasuke, Lee and Neji weren't into girlfriends, for different reasons. But Naruto was never one to put others down as easily as Neji and Sasuke. As for Lee, well…

Naruto had dated many women, mostly older than himself, for example Anko and Temari. But mostly non-Shinobis. Naruto was usually gone on the most dangerous missions and was almost never home. He didn't have time for a real relationship, so… there was one kind of relationship where he did have the time for… But usually women didn't prefer it. Temari and Anko were exceptions… or rather, they still are… Sometimes, to Naruto's ultimate glee, together…

The two of them ARE kind of alike.

On his way to a small restaurant where they served all sorts of food, EXCEPT Ramen, he found himself walking next to Sasuke.

"Oy, you heard about tonight, right?" Sasuke said as he ignored a few women kissing imaginative hearts at him and screaming his name.

Naruto nodded his head. "Of course. I do hope the worst, though. It's been a while since we had a decent fight."

"The worst is a war between Leaf and the Cloud… again." Sasuke let out. "As long as we keep them outside of Leaf, then yeah… we can have fun. But it'll be really bad if they actually get inside Leaf."

Naruto shrugged. "When push comes to shove, we'll be the ones stopping them. There isn't anyone capable of getting past us and Kakashi's Team."

Sasuke sighed. "I hope we get to have some action tonight."

Naruto nodded his agreement as he saw Neji, Sakura and Lee already seated inside the restaurant. "Looks like we're late."

This time Sasuke shrugged. "We'll tell them Kakashi rubbed off on us."

During the time spent together in a real team, they had come to truly respect each other. At first, their team leader had been Shiranui Genma, but he had been killed and then Naruto became the captain, while Lee joined the team, replacing Genma.

---

Unknown to Naruto, even people in Konoha looked up to him. Few of the Rookie Nine had made it as far as the ones in Naruto's team. Ten-Ten had become an ANBU Captain, Kiba had become the number one tracking Shinobi, Ino was feared even by High-levelled Jounins with her Mind Techniques, Hinata had finally made her father proud by proving to everyone that Hanabi would never be stronger than her, Shino had also become an ANBU Captain, Chouji had become a Clan Leader after his father died and Shikamaru was a Jounin Instructor.

Neither of them acquired the Legendary Status the five of Konoha Kyuukai had…

After the small breakfast at the restaurant, Naruto found himself walking to the mall to shop for some groceries. He actually ate vegetables nowadays. His eyes widened as he sensed a familiar Chakra coming towards him. 'Oh no…'

"Naruto!"

"What do you want now, Miku-chaaan…" Naruto slightly whined as he stared at the ANBU Captain in front of him. She took of her ANBU Mask to reveal a beautiful angelic face, surrounded by purple hair.

"You haven't let me know you were back in Konoha already!" She said as she pointed a finger at Naruto's headband.

Naruto hung his head forward, while still looking in Miku's eyes. "Ha? But I got back yesterday night! I just had breakfast and was now on my way to"

Miku interrupted him. "To the mall, yeah, yeah. You promised me you'd take me out as soon as you got back."

Naruto sighed softly. "Yeah, but… But I haven't even been back for a day. I'll take you out for dinner tonight!"

Miku immediately glared at him for that. "Do you think I'm stupid? Almost everyone here in the Village knows you have a mission tonight!"

"Ah…" Naruto began.

"Are you trying to just get away from your promise?" Miku said. "You know, you don't have to"

Naruto interrupted her. "No, no, we do have to. I WANT to have dinner with you. I promise you!"

Miku nodded her head disbelievingly. "Uh-huh. You said that last time."

Naruto looked at the beautiful, and older than him, woman before him. She was truly stunning and he was, of course, just doing it for one thing. But he was sure she was doing that, too. Who would actually fall for an idiot like himself? "Well, how about you join me for shopping?"

Miku glared at him again. "In my ANBU outfit? Sometimes you really are… idiotic." Miku finished as she turned. "I expect you to keep your promise when you get back from your mission, Naruto…" She warned. "Otherwise, I'll tell Kurenai-san!"

Naruto's eyes widened. "No, not her!"

---

Naruto rounded a corner after he finished getting some vegetables, only to run into a famous blonde female…

'Ah man…'

Yamanaka Ino, one of the prettier Kunoichis of Konoha, stood before him. "It's a darn shame you're one of the few people who can actually shield your thoughts from me, Uzumaki-kun…"

Naruto smirked. "Heh, wouldn't you like to know what kind of thoughts are running around in my head, eh?" He reacted as he stopped walking and stood in front of Ino.

Another thing that had changed was that Naruto was as tall as Kakashi now. Sasuke was actually smaller than him, as was Neji.

"I really doubt that, Naruto." Ino responded. "I heard the Konoha Kyuukai were in town, so I decided to check up on all of you."

"All of us?" Naruto said with a frown. "Let me guess, you decided to check up on me, first?"

"Well of course, since you ARE the Captain." Ino said as she played with her long hair and grinned at Naruto.

Yes, Yamanaka Ino had grown to be a very beautiful woman. Instead of the ponytail most of the Yamanaka had, Ino wore her hair loose and just under her shoulders. But the single lock over her eye remained and it made her… pretty hot, Naruto admitted.. Her outfit was that of a Rookie Jounin. Female Jounins usually looked hot, Naruto concluded.

"Well, what do you want?" Naruto asked as he got out of his short, unnoticed daze.

"I've always wondered… Do you hold grudges to some of the people who treated you poorly in the past?" Ino asked, the serious tone in her voice surprising Naruto, which made him narrow his eyes a little bit.

"Actually, yes. Some people are unforgivable and I'll never look at them the same way…" Naruto said.

_"Actually, yes. Some people are unforgivable and I'll never look at them the same way…" _

Ino nodded her head. "As expected…" She gave Naruto a sly grin as she past him by. "You know, you've really turned out to be… really great…" Naruto frowned as she moved closer to his ear and whispered. "Naruto-kun…"

Naruto pouted as Ino walked away, her behind letting Naruto dream. "Women are destined to be mean…"

---

As Naruto approached the small neighbourhood where he lived in, he suddenly turned around and sighed. "Why have you been following me since breakfast…" Naruto started curiously. "Sakura-chan?"

Sakura appeared before Naruto a second after his comments.

"Did you really think you could hide from me?" Naruto said as he sighed. "You can hide your Chakra perfectly, but my nose is almost as good as dog boy's…"

Sakura sighed as she slowly walked towards Naruto… "Naruto..."

Naruto frowned as he stared at Sakura's sad face. "Hey, did Sasuke say something to you or something?" He asked. He remembered seeing Sakura like this only when Sasuke had rejected her or something like that. But that had been ages ago. Sakura didn't have any feelings for the Uchiha anymore, he knew.

"No… no, Sasuke-kun didn't." Sakura began as she stood almost face to face with Naruto. She was smaller. "I just… Something has been bothering me for the past few wee.. days."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "You don't like working under me, that's it, isn't it? You're not happy with me as your captain."

Sakura gently smiled. "Naruto… You're the strongest of Konoha… Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama included. The only one who can stand a chance of harming you in battle is Neji, second in command of our team… Even Sasuke-kun isn't close to where you are…. Even I can admit that." Sakura said. "It won't be a surprise for anyone when you're elected to be the next Hokage, you know."

Naruto looked genuinely surprised of all the praise Sakura was giving him. "Why all of this… now? Sakura-chan?"

Sakura smiled another smile and turned her back to Naruto. "I heard what you said to Ino, you know. Before, earlier today…" Sakura said, about to follow up and repeat Naruto's words.. _"Actually, yes.__ Some people are unforgivable and I'll never look at them the same way…"_

Naruto's confused smile made place for a snarl. "Yeah, and I meant it. I've been there for people through thick and thin… but they've never been there for me." Naruto said. "What kind of a Hokage would I be if I feel, albeit slightly, that way?"

"It's only reasonable, Naruto…" Sakura gently responded, still with her back towards him. "People have been mean to you your entire life. Only now are they nice to you, when they know that the Fox Demon is gone and you have proven to be blood-related to the Fourth. It's unfair, so it's only reasonable that you should be unfair to them as well…"

"Sakura… chan.." Naruto replied, astounded for the fact that Sakura stood up for him. "Thanks."

"It's the least I can do… for all that you've done for me…" Sakura said as she turned around and stared Naruto in the eyes. "Naruto-kun…"

Naruto's eyes widened for two facts… 'She's never added –kun before… And she's on the verge of crying… What happened?' Naruto suddenly got enraged. "What's wrong, Sakura-chan? Who made you cry! I'll make him pay!"

Sakura smiled, as tears slowly came out of her eyes. "You can pretend as much as you want to, Naruto-kun… But your own words prove it to me… You're the one making me cry."

Naruto bit back his rage as it turned into confusion. "Wha… How?" He let out, as confused as a five year old.

"Listen to your own words…" Sakura began as she again turned her back towards him.

He saw her back shake, proof that she was holding back her tears. 'What did I do to her? Did I hurt her? What did I say?'

_"Actually, yes.__ Some people are unforgivable and I'll never look at them the same way…" _Sakura repeated again. "Do you know how your answer on Ino's question made me feel? I asked her to ask you that question! Now I know for sure, that deep down, you will never forgive me!"

Naruto's confusion grew tenfold… "Wha?" He dropped his bag of vegetables to the ground, but it was unheard by both of them.

"I liked Sasuke-kun, you know." Sakura started. "But… it was hard seeing someone else with so many women…" Naruto looked and listened on, confused as anyone can get. "Even you, Naruto, have so many women around you…"

Naruto frowned. 'Yes, they all came throwing themselves at me… what has that all got to do with this? Did Sasuke also have another woman? Did Sakura see it? Damn you, Sasuke, if you hurt her!' Naruto paused in his own thoughts. 'But she said I'm the one making her cry! I wasn't paying attention then! I should have beaten Sasuke up sooner probably! I promised I'd always protect her! Arghh, me and my blindness!'

"I can't blame you, Naruto-kun. You have a busy life now." Sakura said with a sad tone.

'Never too busy to protect you, Sakura…' Naruto thought as he watched Sakura's back. 'I'm sorry I couldn't protect you sooner.'

"But, but! I can never be there for you, Naruto-kun!" Sakura suddenly screamed. Naruto looked a bit around to confirm they were alone. It was broad daylight and they were all alone… "You're always so strong, so independent and you're always there, ready to take the blows!"

Naruto smiled. "I am supposed to take those blows, Sakura… I'm the captain." Naruto said with a gentle voice. "Sakura, I will always protect you."

Sakura's gaze saddened even more, as she noticed Naruto left the –chan out now… "Naruto-kun… Will you ever forgive me?"

"Forgive you!" Naruto reacted immediately. "There's nothing to forgive! Rather, can you forgive me for not protecting you enough?"

Sakura turned around, with definite signs of tears around her eyes. Naruto was so confused… "You were and are still… always protecting me, Naruto-kun… Can you forgive me… for the past? I've always been so angry with you, treating you like trash, like a nuisance… like a demon…" She let out as another tear fell from her right eye. "Can you ever forgive me for being such a naive… and cold-hearted bitch?" She ended with a whisper as she fell on her knees.

"It's really hard seeing you with other women… Miku, the famous ANBU Captain… Anko, Temari, the pretty daughter of the famous Ramen Chef, Ayame and Hinata… even Kurenai!" Sakura panted. "I figured that that was my punishment for liking Sasuke-kun instead of you… And now, now that I've heard you say those words… You'll never like me, will you? Naruto-kun? You'll never forgive me, will you?"

"Sakura…" Naruto began as he put his right hand on the shoulder of the pink-haired girl who was on her knees on the pavement.

"And where is the 'Sakura-CHAN' all of a sudden? Do you pity me now?" Sakura almost screamed, but it came out as a loud sob, embracing the warmth the hand on her shoulder gave her..

Naruto smiled a warm smile, but Sakura couldn't see it. She was, however, greatly surprised when Naruto hugged her from behind. "Sakura… Did you know that I almost never reveal true emotions at all? The –Chan has no meaning for me… It's meant for people who I'll never get to… 'know' for real. People who are open to me and deserve my fullest, fullest attention; I greet them normally, not formally." Naruto said with a gentle voice, while Sakura was still shocked from being hugged from behind.

Unlike Naruto, Sakura didn't have any kinds of relationship throughout her maturing.

"Me greeting you with Sakura, actually means… that I respect you a whole lot more… And never, EVER shall I pity you…" Naruto said with a grin. "I actually look up to you…"

"But I've never been there for you! Just like you said in your words! You were talking about me! You were always there for me! While I have never been there for you…" Sakura ended with a whisper and hoped Naruto wouldn't let go…

"What do you mean? You're the medic-nin of our team. The Legendary Medic-nin even! You're always there for me!" Naruto reacted; tightening the hug and making Sakura slightly blush.

"Naruto-kun… Can you remember even a single time where you needed my medical attention?"

Naruto fell silent. "But I'm an exception… I heal abnormally fast…"

"How many times have I asked you if you had any wounds, any injuries?" Sakura inquired.

"A million times. At least five times every mission…" Naruto remembered.

Sakura nodded. "But you never need me, Naruto-kun… You never need anyone." She concluded.

Naruto made the hug warmer, instead of tightening the hug, he put his own face on her shoulder and whispered in her ear. "I will always need you, Sakura. Who else would I have to fight for? Who else would I have to become Hokage for?"

Sakura's eyes widened at the warmth she fell, it was as if her stomach was expanding, in a good way. "Naruto-kun…"

"You were always there for me, Sakura. I've always fought for you, did you know? Chanting your name inside my head during a fight helped me grow stronger… and outlive all of my opponents. Be sure of it, Sakura, you were always there for me."

Sakura whimpered a bit. "Naruto-kun… I'd much rather have you calling me Sakura-chan…"

Naruto chuckled gently into Sakura's ear. "Why did you wait so long to tell me this, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura embraced both of Naruto's arms and tightened the hug herself, even pushing her own face against Naruto's. "I've been thinking about this for weeks… I have feelings for you, Naruto-kun. But I was too afraid… I remembered my poor treatment of you in the past. How I used to punch you really hard and call you harsh names… Why would you ever love someone who has done such things to you? I even stood up for a stupid boy when you insulted him!"

Naruto smirked. "I never thought you would be calling Sasuke a stupid boy…" he mused out loud.

"I even punched you, hoping Sasuke would be grateful to me for shutting you up!" She said as the tears returned.

Naruto shook his head. "Neh, it's all in the past… I'm a tough guy. All those times you hit me, it didn't really hurt… At least you gave me some attention back then. That was all I needed."

"But that's too sad! That makes me seem like an even colder bitch!"

Naruto sighed and turned Sakura's head so he could look her in the eyes. "So you have feelings for me?"

Sakura tried to turn away, but she wouldn't. She wanted to stare into Naruto's eyes. She nodded slowly and was surprised when Naruto kissed her forehead.

"Am I too late?" Came Sakura's whisper, disappointed that Naruto kissed her forehead instead of somewhere more affectionate.

Naruto smiled as he looked at Sakura's wet face. "You're never too late… You're always right on time…" He whispered as he leaned in to kiss Sakura.

Sakura cried as she kissed back. She cried tears of happiness, as they swam over both Naruto's and Sakura's face.

---

As Naruto approached his house, he found Anko waiting for him.

"What took you so long, Naruto-kun?" She whined. Naruto did a double-take on her sexy clothes. "Open the door already, I've been waiting for a full hour!"

Naruto shook his head. "No, Anko-chan… I can't…"

Anko frowned angrily. "What, you can't! It's been a very long time since I've had a good… Ahum. Just open the damn door! What's wrong with you, did you get a disease on your mission or something?"

Naruto smiled genuinely and Anko was surprised. She didn't see it often on Naruto's face. "Actually. My love has finally confessed her love to me… It was worth waiting for…"

Anko's angry mood changed into a happy one. "Ah…" She sighed, remembering that she wouldn't get any from him ever again now… "That's great, Naruto-kun… It's about time Sakura made a move on you!"

"Thanks, Anko-chan. Now, we're planning on having a quick, small dinner before we leave for our mission… I'm going to change clothes." Naruto said as he walked past Anko.

Anko slightly pouted. "I'm definitely gonna miss you… in bed." Anko smirked as she jumped off. "Finally, your true time has come, Uzumaki! Don't waste it!" She yelled in the distance.

Naruto smiled. "Oh, I won't even think of wasting it…" He whispered as he walked inside, towards a closet with a special lock on it. He opened it with his special Chakra to reveal a box wrapped in gift paper and a beautiful tuxedo. "I never thought I would wear this… But tonight is very special."

---

Perhaps there will be another chapter… Depends on how this is received actually. Cause, well, I kinda suck at writing romance fics, as proven in the past.

Thanks for reading!


End file.
